Same buildings, different names

Vancouver Casinos Online, Once and Now

By Simone OkaforChecked October 8, 2026

Hard Rock Casino Vancouver Great Canadian Casino Vancouver Now called: Great Canadian Casino Vancouver · Dec. 2023

Simone Okafor pointing across to the name ticker beside her, the old-name search just below

Metro Vancouver's nine casinos change names and owners, while people go on using the old ones. Type the name you remember and see what it is now, where it stands, since when and who runs it.

Old names, current names and years
Earlier name	Now	When
Hard Rock Casino Vancouver	Great Canadian Casino Vancouver	Dec. 2023
Edgewater Casino	Parq Casino	Sept. 29, 2017
Fraser Downs Racetrack Casino	Elements Casino Surrey	Dec. 2015
Royal City Star	Starlight Casino	2007
Exhibition Park	Hastings Casino	now
Boulevard Casino	Hard Rock Casino Vancouver	Dec. 20, 2013
Casino Coquitlam	Boulevard Casino	2005/2006

Photo: Canmenwalker, CC BY 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons; converted to black and white.

Nine current names

The catalogue holds nine casinos under their current names. In Vancouver: Parq Casino and Hastings Casino. Burnaby has Grand Villa Casino Burnaby, Coquitlam has Great Canadian Casino Vancouver, and Richmond has River Rock Casino Resort. The other four carry their towns in their names: Starlight Casino New Westminster, Elements Casino Surrey, Cascades Casino Delta and Cascades Casino Langley.

Three now carry a different name than when they opened: Great Canadian Casino Vancouver, Elements Casino Surrey and Hastings Casino. Another three replaced an earlier casino: Parq, Starlight and Grand Villa. River Rock and both Cascades casinos kept their names. Every card below shows the earlier names in grey, each with a year. All nine appear by name on the page Nine casinos and their earlier names.

Card photos via Wikimedia Commons, converted to black and white: Parq by GoToVan from Vancouver, Canada, CC BY 2.0; Hastings by Canmenwalker, CC BY 4.0; River Rock by Arnold C, Attribution; Elements by Leoboudv, CC BY-SA 4.0; Cascades Langley by Arnold C, Attribution.

Simone Okafor in a scarlet dress holding a white board at chest height; the board reads: Run since 1889

Names over the years

1889: the racetrack at Hastings opens for business as East Park, later long known as Exhibition Park. 2001: Great Canadian opens Casino Coquitlam on October 13, the building now called Great Canadian Casino Vancouver. 2004: River Rock Casino Resort opens to the public on June 25, on the former Bridgepoint Market site in Richmond.

2007: Starlight Casino New Westminster opens. On December 9 the same year, the Royal City Star riverboat closes its casino, and the operation moves ashore. 2013: the Coquitlam casino has its grand opening as Hard Rock Casino Vancouver on December 20. 2015: Fraser Downs Racetrack Casino reopens as Elements Casino Surrey after an $11 million renovation.

2017: Parq Vancouver, home of Parq Casino, officially opens on September 29 at 11 p.m. 2022: Cascades Casino Delta opens on September 29. December 2023: Hard Rock Casino Vancouver is renamed Great Canadian Casino Vancouver. The page Metro Vancouver casino names over time lays out the full timeline.

18891889East Park opens: the track at HastingsHastings Casino
2001Oct. 13, 2001Casino Coquitlam opensGreat Canadian Casino Vancouver
2004June 25, 2004River Rock opensRiver Rock Casino Resort
20072007Starlight Casino opensStarlight Casino New Westminster
2013Dec. 20, 2013Hard Rock Casino Vancouver opensGreat Canadian Casino Vancouver
2015Dec. 2015Fraser Downs Racetrack Casino reopens as ElementsElements Casino Surrey
2017Sept. 29, 2017Parq opens; Edgewater’s staff move overParq Casino
2022Sept. 29, 2022Cascades Casino Delta opensCascades Casino Delta
2023Dec. 2023Renamed Great Canadian Casino VancouverGreat Canadian Casino Vancouver
2026May 5, 2026Coquitlam casino to PetroglyphGreat Canadian Casino Vancouver
2026June 16, 2026River Rock to Petroglyph and Musqueam CapitalRiver Rock Casino Resort

Same room, new owner

May 5, 2026: Great Canadian Casino Vancouver in Coquitlam passes to Petroglyph Development Group, owned by Snuneymuxw First Nation, which owns and runs it. The Great Canadian name stays on under a limited licence. June 16, 2026: River Rock Casino Resort changes hands. Great Canadian Entertainment sold it to a partnership of Petroglyph Development Group and Musqueam Capital Corp, of the Musqueam Indian Band. The page Casinos that changed hands holds the dates and the sale wording.

November 7, 2025: Tsleil-Waututh Nation signs a definitive agreement to buy the casino part of Hastings Casino. March 9, 2026: Great Canadian agrees to sell Elements Casino Surrey to SE-MI-AH-MU Development Corporation of Semiahmoo First Nation.

June 16, 2026River Rock Casino Resortnew owners
May 5, 2026Great Canadian Casino Vancouvernew owner, same name
Mar. 9, 2026Elements Casino Surreysale agreed
Nov. 7, 2025Hastings Casinosale agreed

Online play in BC

In British Columbia, PlayNow.com, run by BCLC, is the only legal online gambling site. On August 28, 2026, the Independent Gambling Control Office (IGCO) said every other site letting BC players in operates illegally. Online gambling, like every other form, is for people 19 or older.

This site's home page carries paid links, marked Ad, to a private online casino. It is not PlayNow, and it is not run or licensed by the province. PlayNow limits and Game Break do not apply there. A Game Break agreement covers BC gaming facilities and PlayNow.com, not other online sites. The site earns a commission from those links, and the partner can change.

The page Online casinos in BC, explained sets out the provincial rules in more detail.

Free help, any hour

Gambling Support BC answers free at 1-888-795-6111, 24/7, for any BC resident affected by gambling, including a loved one's gambling.
A caller reaches a navigator who can help right away, find services nearby or connect them to a free counsellor.
Game Break is a free, voluntary self-exclusion program for 6 months, 1 year, 2 years or 3 years, and the term cannot be changed once chosen.

gamblingsupportbc.ca · Where to get gambling help in BC

When the racing stopped

December 5, 2025: thoroughbred racing at Hastings ends with immediate effect, after a run that began in 1889. The last live race had been run on October 19. Hastings Casino stayed open, and its racebook shows races from elsewhere on a monthly simulcast schedule.

August 15, 2025: Fraser Downs in Surrey closes abruptly after the City of Surrey ends the lease. Its last harness races were run on May 2. The casino at the track, Elements Casino Surrey, stayed open. The page Hastings since the last race follows what changed after.

Questions

What is Hard Rock Casino Vancouver called now?

It is Great Canadian Casino Vancouver, at 2080 United Boulevard, Coquitlam. The casino reopened as Hard Rock Casino Vancouver with a grand opening on December 20, 2013. December 2023: renamed Great Canadian Casino Vancouver.

What happened to Edgewater Casino?

Parq Casino replaced it. Edgewater was a temporary casino run by Paragon Gaming at Enterprise Hall in the Plaza of Nations, and all its employees moved to Parq. Parq Vancouver officially opened on September 29, 2017.

Who owns River Rock now?

Since June 16, 2026, River Rock Casino Resort has had new owners. They are a partnership of Petroglyph Development Group (Snuneymuxw First Nation) and Musqueam Capital Corp (Musqueam Indian Band). Great Canadian Entertainment sold it.

What should a visitor bring to the door?

Bring government-issued photo ID. Since June 2023, everyone must show it to enter a BC gambling facility, and IDs are checked against the self-exclusion list. Nobody under 19 may enter a gambling venue in BC.

Is this site a casino?

This site is not a casino. It is an independent guide that takes no bets and has no accounts. Only the home page carries paid links, marked Ad, to one online casino partner that can change, and the site earns a commission from them.